Knysna - Totally charmed by this coastal town!

Knysna, (pronounced as nice ner) is a beautiful coastal town in the garden route. When we were in Cape Town, one of our must do is to go on the garden route.

The garden route starts from Mossel Bay (approx 3 ½ hrs from Cape Town by car) to Port Elizabeth. The garden route is part of a major motorway (N2) that meander through coastal towns with luscious green mountains on one side and pounding waves on the beach on the other.

From Mossel Bay which we stayed one night, we drove towards Kynsna, passing through towns like Wilderness and Sedgefield, through lakes and cliffs. Wilderness have an European feel with some houses perched on the side of the mountain, very much like Swiss designed house in the Alps but without snow. Sedgefield is a small town with craft shops and cafes on both sides.

We went to Knysna without any prebooked accommodation, as it was in the beginning of summer, we took the chance of looking for an affordable and clean place to stay. After rejecting one, we stumbled upon a sign; Margie Place. It is a timber frame house on a slope, the owner Margie was so charming and friendly that we were worried momentarily about how to turn her down if the room isn't ideal. Luckily, we do not have to do so. The blue room as it is called is on the top level of the house and the view of the lagoon and the sea is simply breathtaking. The view is unblocked by full length glass pane and door leading to the balcony. Margie's Place operates as a self catering accommodation and we paid less than £20 per room per night.

http://www.tiscover.co.za/margiesplace

We had our breakfast at Knysna Head, which is the entrance from the lagoon into the sea. The striking cliffs and rock formation at the Heads also contain stories of shipwreck at the mouth of the sea. From the lookout in Eastern Heads, you feel the serenity of the lagoon with the laughter of some youth diving into the water and yet on the other side, you can feel the treacherous power of the sea splashing on the cliffs.

There are lots to do in Knysna. For the adventurous, you could do abseiling from the Featherbed Nature Reserve, which is situated in the Western Head, or if you are really brave, try bungy jumping from the world's highest jump which is 216ms at Bloukrans Bridge. I don't have the courage to embark into such extreme sport but it was interesting to watch the participant traversing from the side of the bridge to the middle and then geared to jump from the middle of the bridge. For the brave hearts, you get a certificate and a personal DVD of your jump.

If you prefer to take it easy, you can take boat trips around the Heads starting from the Waterfront, explore the Garden of Eden, where you can see elephants, dwarf chameleon, waterfowl and forest birds or simply chill out on the beach.

Some general information about Knysna:
Climate- temperate; summer average 27deg, winter average 14 deg in the daytime.
Distance from Cape Town- 500Kms, Port Elizabeth - 260km